


Everybody Talks (Or, That Incident With The Shirt)

by stillskies



Series: Disconnect!verse [2]
Category: Hikaru no Go
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-09-14
Updated: 2012-09-14
Packaged: 2017-11-14 05:00:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/511577
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stillskies/pseuds/stillskies
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Touya shows up to a match in Hikaru's shirt, the rumor mill starts churning.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the [team Deathmatch](http://hikarunogo.dreamwidth.org/) challenge under the pseudonym **kyoji kagami**. This was my entry for rounds 2-5.

It seems like a brilliant idea at the time – keep Touya _here_ , in Hikaru's apartment, with promises of games and dinner. Well, maybe the _dinner_ isn't all that novel or brilliant of an idea – after all, if you're going to coerce your rival into staying without letting him _realize_ that you're really sort of not wanting to let him _leave_ , dinner is kind of a given. So he orders sushi and plies Touya with tea and sits him in front of the goban as soon as Touya can't eat another bite.

And when the game ends, and the discussion goes on longer than usual because the clock is conveniently in Hikaru's eyesight, Touya simply rolls his eyes and points out yet another brilliant move (well, Touya says _ridiculous_ move, but Hikaru knows genius when he sees it)and asks _were you even **thinking** , Shindou?_ Hikaru simply grins and points out that Touya is only grouchy because he _lost_ , and if _Touya_ had played that move, then Hikaru would naturally point out the brilliance of it. Touya raises his eyebrows and simply _stares_ , which would be more distracting if Touya wasn't shaking his head and trying to _stand up_ at the same time.

"Where are you going?" Hikaru blurts out and Touya stops. Turns around. "I mean, I thought we could play another game."

Touya looks pointedly at the clock. "It is late, Shindou. I'm going to miss the last train if I stay any later." A note of hesitation in Touya's voice makes Hikaru grin.

"Are you sure you're not just worried I'll beat you again?" he taunts. Touya's eyes flash and Hikaru has to stop from biting his lip. Touya clearly doesn't know _anything_. "I mean, I guess I understand if you're _scared_."

Touya is suddenly sitting in front of the goban again and quickly clearing the board. "I will make you regret those words, Shindou Hikaru."

Hikaru thinks his name is really pretty awesome when Touya says it. "Bring it."

•○•○•

They make it with five minutes to spare. Akira thinks it might just be wiser to _strangle_ Shindou. Shindou, who said _don’t worry, Touya, I set the alarm_ and _sheesh, Touya, I know how to work an **alarm clock**_. Shindou, who _clearly doesn't_ understand the meaning of punctuality.

He walks through the door and quickly takes his seat. He ignores the people staring at him – Akira is _never_ late – and glares at the goban. 

"Is that Shindou's _shirt_?"

Akira looks up to find Waya Yoshitaka staring at him, mouth hanging open. He spares a moment to pity Morishita-sensei, who _clearly_ screwed _something_ up in a past life to have students like Waya and Shindou. Then he realizes what Waya _said_ , and he feels his cheeks heat up. Quickly, he grabs a goke and forcefully places it on the ground next to him.

"Nigiri," he says through clenched teeth, just as the proctor announces that it is time to begin.

○•○•○

Waya is giving him odd looks over lunch, and Hikaru finds it is affecting his appetite. The more Waya stares, the less inclined Hikaru is to _eat_ , which is just not acceptable. After all, they are at Hikaru's _favorite_ ramen shop, and a big bowl of _extra spicy ramen_ is on the table in front of him. 

He has a reasonably sized mouthful (which Touya would say is reasonable for a _barnyard animal_ , but Touya _clearly_ doesn't understand the delicacy that is ramen) when Waya finally speaks.

"So. Touya."

Hikaru blinks and chews and swallows. Then he realizes that maybe his inner Touya voice was right and that was a _little_ too much to eat at once, especially when the ramen is extra spicy, and downs half a glass of water before giving Waya his attention. "Touya what?"

Waya stares. This leads Hikaru to wonder _exactly_ what Morishita Shigeko could possibly see in Waya Yoshitaka, except maybe his pocketbook, but Saeki-san has more money (well, when he isn't spending it on Ashiwara-san, who eats more than Hikaru. In fact, Hikaru one day hopes to be _just like_ Ashiwara-san, despite Touya's horrified look when Hikaru told him about it that one time). He is musing about Waya's spinelessness – after all Shigeko-san is a very willful young woman – when Waya blinks and shakes his head.

"Morishita-sensei is going to kill you," Waya states matter-of-factly before taking a sip of Hikaru's soda. Hikaru supposes this is fair, since the water that he decimated a moment earlier was actually Waya's. "I mean, seriously, Shindou? _Touya_? What were you _thinking_?"

Hikaru is confused. It's not that he didn't expect Waya to catch on at some point (after all, denial can only go so far, and even Waya isn't _that_ dumb), but he isn't sure what Morishita-sensei has to do with anything. After all, one has nothing to do with the other. Well, for the moment, anyway. He's pretty sure he has a good chance of getting through to Touya if he plays it cool, like he has been.

"I know you don't like Touya," Hikaru starts, winding more ramen noodles around his chopsticks, "but I doubt Morishita-sensei cares about who I _like_ , Waya."

"He might since you are _screwing Touya Akira_ ," Waya hisses.

Hikaru's chopsticks fall out of his hands and into his bowl. "I'm _what_?"

•○•○•

The shirt. It all started with the horrid shirt, Akira decides. After all, it's not as though Akira owns anything remotely as obnoxious as Shindou's bright red 'Let's 5!' shirt. And even if he did, his mother probably would have _accidentally_ misplaced it, like she did with the hideous _neon pink_ 'Party time!' shirt Shindou had gotten him for his birthday.

And now everyone is staring at him (well, _Waya-san_ keeps staring at him, and Ashiwara-san is giving him curious looks. And Shindou, who _started_ this whole fiasco by spilling tea on his perfectly presentable white button-down at breakfast, is avoiding his gaze _entirely_. So, in Akira's world, that constitutes _everyone_ ) and he isn't sure why except that it _has_ to be about the shirt. He can only imagine the thoughts running through their heads: _Has Shindou finally rubbed off on Touya? How sad; he had such a solid, promising career. And a proper wardrobe. What a shame._

He isn't sure what his career has to do with the shirt, but he's sure there's a correlation somewhere.

"I have nothing," Waya-san says, and it takes Akira a moment to remember that they are still _playing_. Now Shindou and his shirt have disrupted his concentration.

 _There!_ Akira thinks darkly, _that's how Shindou is going to destroy my career._

He thanks Waya-san for the game – a rather uneventful one, but at least Waya-san didn't embarrass himself this time – and quickly stands up. Waya-san never wants to discuss their games; Shindou says that they usually go over them in study group, and Shindou usually explains Akira's moves – which is ridiculous, because Shindou wouldn't know a perfectly sane, brilliant move if Akira destroyed all of his formations with it.

But that is neither here nor there. 

He records the win. Usually, once his game is over, he goes to check on Shindou's game. He is about to do just that when Ashiwara-san smiles at him, and it's that smile that Akira knows means _something_ , and then Ashiwara-san is glancing at Shindou and giving Akira a _meaningful look_. 

Akira shakes his head and runs.

○•○•○

Hikaru is trying to _leave_ , but people keep getting in his _way_. He's not sure what the sudden fascination with him is, but it's getting annoying and he's got, like, _ten_ voicemails from a frantic Touya. He didn't even _know_ Touya could be anything other than annoyingly calm, frustratingly smug, and pissed. 

"Shindou-kun," someone calls, and Hikaru turns on reflex to see Ashiwara-san hiding behind a pillar and waving at him. Ashiwara-san isn't fooling anyone, but he's the only one not asking stupid questions about a _stupid shirt_ , and _god_ , if he had _known_ that Touya wearing that shirt was going to cause everyone to go _insane_ , he'd have let Touya go shirtless.

Hikaru blinks and tries to remember what he was doing.

•○•○•

He is cursing Shindou's name in every language that he knows – which, admittedly, isn't that many; he makes a note to begin learning Chinese and French once he has the basics of Korean down – when someone rings the doorbell. He opens the door to find Ashiwara-san and Shindou on the other side. Ashiwara-san's hands are filled with bags from the market, and Shindou is staring at his feet, holding a lone carrot.

"Shindou-kun was hungry," Ashiwara-san informs him as he enters and kicks off his shoes. "It's easier to cook for three than just for two, so I invited him along." Akira stares blankly at him and Ashiwara-san's face falls. "Was that okay, Akira-kun?"

He knows he's being played – he's seen Ashiwara-san use that exact same expression on Ogata-san whenever he wants ice cream or sushi or ramen and doesn't want to pay for it – but it's impossible to rebuke him. Besides, Shindou is already _there_ and it would be rude to turn him out. "It's fine, Ashiwara-san," he replies, stepping aside so that Shindou can enter. 

Shindou stops staring at his shoes long enough to meet Akira's gaze before suddenly turning bright red and rushing after Ashiwara-san, offering to help cook, leaving Akira to close the door.

○•○•○

Shindou Hikaru stares at the cutting board, knife in hand, and begins to panic. He isn't sure how this happened, but he's sure it has something to do with the fact that Touya was glaring holes into his skull. And now, instead of running home, he's standing in the Touya family's kitchen while Ashiwara-san hums and floats around effortlessly, placing random things into a pot. The kitchen begins to smell delicious five seconds later. Hikaru is apparently expected to chop up the vegetables, despite never having cooked anything except instant meals in his entire life. 

He's sure Ashiwara-san knows this, but he's also pretty sure that Ashiwara-san is a sadist. It's the only explanation for practically _abducting_ Hikaru, dragging him to the store, and then depositing him in Touya's kitchen. How Saeki-san puts up with it, Hikaru isn't sure. Maybe Saeki-san is a masochist. 

"Shindou-kun," Ashiwara-san says, "could you measure out a quarter cup of salt and put it in the broth, please? I'll chop the carrots."

Ashiwara-san doesn't give him time to say anything before nudging him away from the kitchen island and towards the spice rack. 

"A quarter cup of salt," Hikaru mumbles. "I can do that."

•○•○•

Akira is sitting next to Shindou; Ashiwara-san is sitting across from them, placing curry over his rice and smiling beatifically. Shindou is moving his food around his plate, and Akira kicks his shin. He may be furious about this afternoon, but he'll not let Shindou be rude at the table. 

Ashiwara-san is staring at them expectantly, so Akira dutifully takes a bit of his food.

And nearly chokes.

Calmly, he takes his water glass and takes a sip. And then another one. A sideways glance shows Shindou thoughtfully chewing his food. Ashiwara-san hasn't touched his.

"Congratulations," Ashiwara-san says.

Akira frowns. "On what, Ashiwara-san?"

Ashiwara-san grins. "Well, it finally happened, right? I mean, it was your first time, right?"

"First time?" Akira says, and then realizes that this was Shindou's first time cooking. Ever. Well, unless you count instant ramen, which is vile and not really food. Which would actually make this the first time he's tried Shindou's cooking. "I suppose it was about time, wasn't it? I mean, it would be ridiculous to keep dragging this on."

"Exactly," Ashiwara-san agrees.

Next to him, Shindou starts choking.

○•○•○

"Is something wrong, Shindou-kun?" Ashiwara-san asks.

"Just fine," he gasps, grabbing his water. "The curry is just a bit spicy."

Ashiwara-san frowns and takes a bite. His eyes widen and he grabs his water. "How much salt did you put in Shindou-kun?"

Hikaru shrugs. "A quarter of a cup, like you said."

"And you measured it with the measuring cups?"

"I used one of the water glasses," he replies, confused. "I filled it a quarter of the way up."

"You used a _water glass_?" Touya asks incredulously. 

"It was a cup!" Hikaru says indignantly. "How was I supposed to know that there are special cups for _salt_? I've never cooked before!"

"You've never cooked before, Shindou-kun?" Ashiwara-san cuts in, looking at him with wide eyes. Hikaru shakes his head. "I mean, never?"

"Well, I've made cup ramen and some freezer meals, you know, the ones you stick in the microwave?"

"Wait," Touya says, "you didn't know Shindou's never cooked before?" Ashiwara-san shakes his head. Confused, Touya asks, "then why were you congratulating us?"

•○•○•

"He thinks we had sex," Shindou says, and his face is suddenly bright red.

Akira stares at Shindou blankly for a moment. "I'm sorry, what?"

"Sex," Shindou says again, staring intently at his curry. 

"You mean you didn't?" Ashiwara-san asks, and Akira is sure he's imagining the disappointed note in Ashiwara-san's voice.

"No," Akira replies, shocked. "What would make you think that?"

Ashiwara-san shrugs. "Well, you came to today's match in Shindou-kun's shirt, and whenever you would look at each other, you would blush. I just thought..."

"No," Akira says vehemently. "I couldn't concentrate because _everyone was staring at me_ because _Shindou_ can't even have _breakfast_ without making a _mess_."

"You don't have to sound so insulted, Touya," Shindou mutters. 

" _Insulted_? I'm _mortified_. Does _everyone_ think that Shindou and I have… That we've…" He can't finish the sentence, but Ashiwara-san nods sheepishly. "Oh my god."

"Jeez, Touya, you don't have to be so uptight," Shindou says, glaring at him. "Big deal. Who cares if everyone thinks that we're having sex? I mean, it's not like people weren't thinking it already, anyway. Besides, it's not like we are, so who cares?"

"You mean to say you don't care that _every person we work with_ thinks that we're… Doing _that_?"

"It's not a big deal, Touya," Shindou says, but for some reason, he looks hurt. "So, whatever, right? Aren't you the one who says to ignore the gossip, anyway?"

"But," Akira starts, but Shindou is standing up.

"Thanks for the food, Ashiwara-san, sorry I messed it up."

"It's okay, Shindou-kun," Ashiwara-san replies, looking uncertainly at the two of them. 

Without another word, Shindou leaves.


	2. Chapter 2

It's raining by the time he gets back to his apartment, and the only thing he can think of is that he's clearly in a manga, because the sudden downpour is just too perfect otherwise. Of course, if this were a manga, Touya would come running after him, say something cliché like _I was only upset because it's not true, yet!_ , and throw himself into Shindou's arms. Suddenly, the rain would stop and a rainbow would appear to bless their stereotypically cliché BL relationship.

Instead, his apartment is cold, his clothes are dripping wet, and he's starting to shiver a little bit. He's also hungry, but he can ignore that at the moment. He kicks off his shoes and empties his jacket pocket; fortunately, his mom had gotten him a good brand, and the contents are nice and dry. The screen on his cell phone suddenly lights up, announcing that Touya Akira is calling him. He stares at it for a moment before hitting 'Ignore Call,' places the phone on the table, and heads toward the bathroom.

•○•○•

For three days, Akira tries getting in touch with Shindou. He's left messages on his cell phone and tried e-mailing; he's even gone so far as to call Shindou's parents' house, leaving a message with a befuddled Shindou-san. 

He's about to just try showing up at Shindou's apartment when Shindou walks into the Go salon and calmly takes the seat across from him.

"Shindou?"

"Let's play."

○•○•○

It's not like he can ignore Touya _forever_ (although Waya does suggest it. He even comes up with a convoluted plan that has something to do with the plague and decoys for oteai and league matches against Touya. He's pretty sure that Waya is watching _way_ too much television) and they usually meet up on Thursdays anyway, so it wasn't difficult to figure out that Touya would be here.

Touya is staring at him, hands neatly folded in front of him. Almost like he's seeing a ghost. Which, Hikaru thinks, would be pretty hilarious – prim and proper Touya suddenly getting haunted. He hopes it's the ghost of a ramen chef. Who would make Touya sick as a dog unless he eats bowl after bowl of ramen. Then maybe Touya would appreciate the savory broth and the delicate noodles…

Touya is blinking at him, and it takes Hikaru a moment to realize that Touya is holding out his closed fist: nigiri. Quickly, he disengages himself from his Touya-haunted-by-a-ramen-chef fantasy and places one black stone on the goban.

Touya wins black.

•○•○•

Shindou is quiet as joseki progresses, and Akira begins to fume. It’s just like Shindou to _disappear_ for multiple days _without_ contacting him, and then _show back up_ when he feels he’s ready to come back. The more he thinks about it, the more upset he gets. He plays in the upper right corner – a vicious attack that Shindou should take head on – and places the stone with more force than necessary. Shindou looks at him, shakes his head, and avoids the fight that Akira is spoiling for.

Five consecutive attacks and five consecutive dodges later, Akira finally says, “I have been trying to get a hold of you.” He leaves the _for the last three days_ part unsaid; he’s positive Shindou counts days until they see each other just like he does.

Shindou shrugs. “I’ve been busy.”

“Too busy to send a reply to the e-mail I sent?” he replies, keeping his voice light. They’re barely in chuuban, and despite his mood, he really wants to play against Shindou.

“We saw each other a few days ago,” Shindou points out and plays in the lower left, avoiding yet another confrontation in the center. 

“Yes, but,” Akira starts, then stops. He’s not sure how to word what happened, because it wasn’t a fight, but Shindou was upset at the time. “You seemed upset.”

Another shrug. “I leave here upset all the time.” He doesn’t give Akira a chance to say that it’s not the same, because they all get upset over games, and their fights have nothing to do with them as _people_ ; this does. “Besides, we’ve gone weeks without seeing or talking to each other.”

“We don’t usually have these problems,” Akira replies archly, playing directly in the middle of Shindou’s territory. 

“We don’t have any problems,” Shindou says cautiously. He points to one of Akira’s earlier moves. “Well, except for that weak-ass move in the upper right.”

○•○•○

He allows himself to be drawn into the fight and gleefully points out perceived errors in Touya’s midgame. They aren’t anywhere near yose, but it’s easier to fight about go than to talk about their supposed romance. The yelling and name-calling is familiar, and he doesn’t really have to give it his full attention; whenever there is a pause, he only has to shake his head, say something like, “Please, an insei could beat you if you play like that,” and Touya is off again.

The problem with being able to tune the fight out is that he has time to think. He wants to ask why Touya got so up in arms about a stupid rumor, because he’s pretty sure that his feelings aren’t one-sided. He can think of a dozen instances off the top of his head where something _almost_ happened, but one of them caught it and pulled back. 

_Of course,_ Hikaru thinks, _it could just be all in my head._

>•○•○•

He hears the whispers (which, if he really thinks about, probably aren’t whispers anymore if he can _hear them_ over the sound of his and Shindou’s argument) and immediately stops talking. He sits down and takes a moment to calm himself. Shindou is watching him with a concerned look, but Akira shakes his head and continues the game.

 _Maybe,_ he thinks, _these arguments are giving people the wrong idea._ After all, it’s not a secret; anyone who visits the salon hears the tales of their fights. 

They could stop fighting, see if that helps. But, Akira _likes_ the fights. He likes the way Shindou’s eyes light up, how everything else around them disappears. He especially likes how, when provoked just enough, Shindou’s face flushes and he leans over the goban so close to Akira that Akira can see himself reflected in Shindou’s eyes.

Shindou doesn’t say anything, and they finish the game. Shindou loses by 3 moku, which is ridiculous, but not unexpected.

○•○•○

His cell phone wakes him up. He has to look at the alarm clock to see that it is nearly 11:00 in the morning. Rolling over, he makes a blind grab for his phone and jabs the answer key without looking. “What’s up?” He knows he sounds like he’s just woken up, but anyone who calls him knows better than to call before noon on his days off.

“You said you’d go apartment hunting with me,” a voice says on the other end, and it takes Shindou a second to place it.

Yashiro.

“Shit,” he says and stumbles out of bed. He opens the nearest drawer and pulls out a pair of boxers. “Damn it, are you at the station?”

“Yes,” Yashiro says, and Hikaru can tell that Yashiro is amused. 

“I’ll be right there,” Hikaru promises, and hangs up before Yashiro can say anything else. He grabs a pair of shorts off the floor and the first shirt he can touch out of the closet. He doesn’t really have time for a shower, but he hops in anyway. Yashiro can wait five more minutes.

•○•○•

“So,” Shindou says, “he found an apartment.”

“Mm,” Akira says. He is cradling his phone between his head and his shoulder, trying to make tea. Ashiwara-san will be there any minute, and the least he can do is offer him tea. “When will he be moving?”

“Next month.” Shindou sounds happy, but it’s unclear whether it’s because Yashiro is moving to Tokyo or because he finally beat the final boss who monologues about hearts and darkness, about whom Shindou has also been ranting. It’s a tossup. “Anyway, I don’t have room in my apartment for him to crash here, so I told him I’d ask you.”

“He’s welcome to stay here as long as he needs,” Akira replies. _Where did Mother put the tea leaves?_ “My parents will be in Korea until the end of next month.”

“Good, good,” comes the reply. “Hey, Touya. Can I ask you something?”

Akira finds the bag of tea leaves. “Ha,” he says before realizing that Shindou asked him a question. “Of course, Shindou.”

He hears Shindou take a deep breath. “Are you free on Sunday?”

○•○•○

“Sunday?” Touya asks. “I… think so. “

“Let’s go to a movie,” Hikaru says and holds his breath. He doesn’t ask Touya to do non-go related things, except eat, but that’s usually during games and after they meet at the salon. So, it doesn’t really count, he reasons. Besides, friends go to movies all the time.

“A… movie?”

“Yeah,” Hikaru replies. “You know, that thing where you sit in a dark room and pictures flash on a big, white screen?”

“I know what a _movie_ is, Shindou,” Touya says archly.

“Good, then I’ll meet you at the Shibuya station at one,” Hikaru says and hangs up before Touya can say anything.


	3. Chapter 3

Touya Akira doesn’t know much about anything outside of go, which usually suits him just fine; after all, who cares if doesn't know who the latest pop sensation is as long as he's challenging for titles at the age of twenty-one? No one in his circles – save Shindou, of course, and possibly Ashiwara-san – cares much for what serves as mainstream entertainment. If there isn't a goban involved in some way, it is not important enough to hold his attention.

Which isn't to say that he doesn't enjoy movies on the rare occasion that he sees them. His mother is very fond of traditional Japanese films, and Akira has seen every film by Kurosawa Akira (his mother once joked that he was named for the famous director, although his father assures him this is not true and that they just found the name to be suitable). He is ninety-eight percent sure that black and white films are _not_ what Shindou has in mind, though.

○•○•○

He has it all planned out: they'll meet up at the station and head over to Toho Cinemas (barring Touya showing up in something ridiculous, like a sweater-vest or _anything_ purple, in which case he is prepared to drag Touya into the nearest clothing shop and buy him something _not_ embarrassing to wear in public for someone who isn't old man Kuwabara's age). From there, he'll let Touya pick the movie, and if Touya doesn't _know_ any of the films playing – which, considering this is _Touya_ , is a possibility – well, then they can watch _Spider-Man_ or the new _Batman_ movie. 

Then they'll buy snacks, watch the movie, and go home. It's the perfect plan, Hikaru knows, because it's almost like a date, except it _isn't_ , so Touya won't be suspicious. Plus, it's during the day, and who goes on a date in the middle of the afternoon?

Well, Saeki-san does. And he's pretty sure Waya usually takes out Shigeko-san on Sunday afternoons. _But,_ he thinks fiercely, _they don’t count._ Besides, he's pretty sure that Touya doesn't even know what a date _is_ , and is therefore unlikely to suspect that his eternal rival is taking him on one.

And that thought is just all sorts of depressing, so Hikaru banishes it and goes to wash the bleach from his bangs.

•○•○•

He is exactly seventeen minutes early, and is wondering if that is enough time to find a clothing boutique, buy a plain white button down, and be back at the station before Shindou even arrives. Considering it's Shindou, Akira figures he has a pretty good chance. 

He makes it two steps before Shindou comes barreling off the train, wildly looking back and forth before spotting Akira. Akira forces himself to wait until Shindou reaches him and silently curses the fact that Shindou Hikaru is _early_ , for what is probably the first and _only_ time in his life.

"Hey, Touya!" Shindou is wearing a dark blue button up over a white long-sleeved shirt. There is something written on the chest – some English slogan or another – that Akira cannot decipher, partly because most of the words on either side are obscured by the dress shirt. His bangs are bright, the color crisp. "What are you wearing?"

It takes every ounce of self-control he possesses _not_ to look down at his purple-and-green argyle sweater. He had figured that the theatre would be cold – they always were, whenever he would go with his mother – but he hadn't counted on the strange looks by people his age wearing clothes that looked like they came out of Shindou's closet.

"What?" he says, crossing his arms over his chest. 

Shindou just shakes his head, grabs Akira's wrist, and leads him out of the station.

○•○•○

There are about fifty million stores between the station and the theatres, which is an impressive feat since Toho Cinemas is about two minutes away. He looks at window displays as they pass storefronts until the one he wants appears. He tosses a grin back to Touya, who looks so uncomfortable it's almost hilarious, and pulls him into the shop.

The last time he had been here, it had been with Yashiro, who had been looking for some nice button ups and plain t-shirts that didn't cost an arm and leg. Yashiro had been grumbling about some sort of meeting with a counselor for school while Hikaru had looked around and promptly declared the clothes stylish but boring.

Which he figures will fit Touya perfectly.

"Here," he says, grabbing a nice dark green v-neck from the rack. Touya takes the shirt without a word, which Hikaru assumes is good. He's about to usher Touya off to the fitting room to try it one when he sees a gray vest on one of the tables. "Take this, too."

•○•○•

Akira isn't sure what's going on – well, he _knows_ what's going on: he's shopping for _clothes_ with _Shindou_. He's holding the v-neck and the vest and looking around for a sales associate when one magically appears, taking the clothes from his hands and chatting about some movie star or other who bought that same vest just the other day, isn't that fascinating? They reach the fitting room, and the attendant opens the door just as he launches into a story about some person Akira has never met. Akira shakes his head politely and closes the door to the fitting room.

The v-neck is nice; it's soft and light, which will be perfect during the spring. The vest is not his style and looks awkward on him, so he takes it off immediately. He nods at his reflection in the mirror, takes the shirt off, and puts his argyle sweater back on. When he exits the dressing room, he hands the vest to the attendant.

"Didn't like the vest?" the guy says with a shake of his head.

Akira shakes his head and starts towards the sales counter, where Shindou is waiting with a bag in his hand.

"No vest?" Shindou asks. "Oh well. Look what I picked up for Yashiro." There is a huge grin on his face which means that, whatever is in that bag, Yashiro is going to _hate_ it. Shindou pulls out a simple black tie with little white and red dots.

Akira frowns and takes a closer look. The white dots are _skeleton heads_ and the red dots are actually _hair bows_. "You truly lack a sense of self-preservation, Shindou."

○•○•○

Touya decides he wants to see some movie called _Witness For The Prosecution,_ which sounds like it could be interesting. He pays for their tickets – which Touya protests, of course. Hikaru rolls his eyes. "I invited _you_ out," he points out.

"But," Touya starts. 

"It's only fair." He smiles and leads them toward the concession stand. "Do you want popcorn?"

Touya shakes his head. "I'll just have a water," he tells the guy behind the counter, who shrugs and hands him a bottle. 

Hikaru gets a large soda, a large popcorn, a package of green tea pocky, and two scoops of Neapolitan ice cream in a waffle cone. Touya is looking at him with wide eyes, but Hikaru shrugs, takes a bite of ice cream, and attempts to lead them to their theatre.

•○•○•

Shindou doesn't stop complaining about the movie until they get off of the train at Akira's stop. 

"I mean, come _on_ ," Shindou rants. "It was _so_ obvious that she was lying, so why the hell did he get off?"

Akira sighs. "Reasonable doubt, Shindou," he says for the hundredth time. "Her testimony was unreliable, and there wasn't enough to prosecute him on. Besides, the blame had shifted to her."

"Whatever, it was stupid. And black and white? When was that movie made? In the 50s?"

"1957, actually," Akira says primly. 

"Man, that was _ages_ ago," Shindou complains. 

"Well, next time _you_ can pick the movie," he replies archly, and for a second, Shindou freezes before breaking out into a big grin. "But you can't say anything when _I_ start complaining."

"Deal," Shindou agrees easily. "I guess it wasn't too bad. I mean, that guy who played the defense lawyer? He was pretty cool. And the nurse was funny."

Akira's street is just ahead and he slows down. It's… nice walking with Shindou after a movie. They reach the corner and stop. Akira is about to say something – maybe, 'well, here's my street,' except that sounds nothing at all like him and more like one of the shoujo heroines in Ashiwara-san's manga – but Shindou spares him the awkwardness.

"I'll see you Thursday, right?" Akira nods. "Cool. I've got to stop by Yashiro's new place to get the key, and the office closes soon, so I gotta go."

"Ah, okay," Akira says eloquently. "See you on Thursday, then."

○•○•○

They fall into a comfortable pattern: Go salon on Thursdays, movies on Sundays. For a while, Hikaru pays. Whenever Touya argues, he simply points out that it was his idea, so he should pay. It works for a few months until Touya invites Yashiro to go with them.

"I'll pay for him," Touya says, and both Hikaru and Yashiro look at him like he's gone insane. 

"I can pay for myself," Yashiro says, heading towards the ticket counter. "I mean, it's not like we're on a date or anything. Sheesh."

Touya gives Hikaru a look that has him smiling sheepishly and following Yashiro. Before he can reach the line, Touya has him by the arm and is pulling him back. "What?"

"Have these been… dates?" 

He's not really sure how to answer the question, because, as much as Hikaru wants to say, "Yeah, totally. We've been dating for about five months now; where have you been?" he can't really say that. Part of it is because, well, they only _look_ like dates, and how pathetic would Hikaru have to be to say that they've been going on dates when only one of them knows about it? Waya would never let him live it down.

"Dates?" Hikaru hedges. _Think, think, think!_ "Do you want them to be?"

•○•○•

It's not something Akira wants to think about, because a part of him thinks that maybe, yeah, he _does_ kind of want these to be dates, except that Yashiro is here, and who has a third person tag along on a date? And it's not like Shindou was upset with him for inviting Yashiro. In fact, Shindou had thought it was a great idea.

"I'll pay for my ticket," he says instead and pretends to ignore the way Shindou's face falls.

○•○•○

They skip a movie week –Touya is out of town for a Kisei challenger match, and Yashiro has to study. Then another – this time, it's because of an international tournament in China that he had agreed to a year ago. 

He's eliminated in the fifth round against some Chinese guy, but has to stay until the end of the tournament. When he finally gets back to Japan, Touya overanalyzes _every. Single. Move._ Finally, when Touya fails to say anything about the newest rumor circulating around the Ki'in – courtesy of Waya, who Hikaru _swears_ lives to make his life miserable – Hikaru upends his goke on the goban, makes a snide remark about Touya's clothes – a hideous pastel _pink_ button up with some paisley yellow tie that Hikaru would love to see go up in flames – and leaves.

Hikaru is irritated and annoyed and Yashiro is with some group for some stupid presentation, so it's not like he can just crash there and vent. Because he _really_ needs to vent, and who better to vent to than Yashiro, who is usually sympathetic (when he isn't freaking over some paper or test) and always seems to have beer? Which Hikaru really needs right now.

It's not Touya's fault, of course. It's just a rumor; after all, Touya wouldn't sleep with Ogata-san. But. He can see where people could get that idea. Ogata-san always stands a little too close to Touya, or places his hand on the small of his back to lead him through a door. And it's not like Ogata-san is discriminate with who he sleeps with, although, to be fair, he's only ever heard about Ogata-san's sex life from Ichikawa-san, who Hikaru thinks secretly likes Ogata-san. And it's always been women, although Hikaru thinks that maybe Ogata-san and Ashiwara-san have slept together. 

He spends the rest of the week agonizing over it until Yashiro tells him to knock it off. "Your go sucks, and if you're seriously going to play like this, I have a paper I should be writing."

"What if-"

"Look," Yashiro says as he starts to the clear the goban – not that Hikaru can blame him: it really was a crap game. "If Touya is sleeping with Ogata-sensei, so what? Are you his dad or something?"

"But-"

"But, it's more likely that it's just a stupid rumor. I mean, wasn't there one about you two sleeping together last year because he wore your shirt?" Hikaru remains quiet. "It's a _rumor_ , Shindou. You know what's not? The Nongshim qualifiers. Those are _next week_. And you said you'd help me study Morishita-sensei's kifu, so, if we're not going to play, let's study."

•○•○•

Akira is the only one of the so-called 'New Wave' to qualify for the Nongshim Cup. It's not surprising that Yashiro doesn't make it – his school workload has been starting to weigh him down, and Akira knows that there is something else going on with him, though he doesn't want to pry – but he _is_ a bit disappointed when Shindou falls out against Ogata-san.

He offers to go over the game with him – Shindou had stormed out after the loss – but Shindou refuses. "I don't care," he declares, dropping on to the couch. Shindou's apartment is a mess and Akira has to fight the urge to clean it. 

Instead, he frowns and finds a clean – well, by _Shindou_ standards – chair to perch on. For the past few weeks, Shindou has become increasingly hostile whenever Ogata-san is mentioned. If Shindou were sixteen, he could possibly understand it; he knows that Shindou and Ogata-san played at a game at a conference, and that Ogata-san swore that he was playing someone else. And there was that incident in the hospital, where Ogata-san had pushed Shindou against a wall. But Shindou has grown up, matured. He might not _like_ Ogata-san, but he's usually civil. "What is your problem with Ogata-san?"

Shindou snorts. "You mean, besides him being creepy as hell?"

Akira stiffens. "Ogata-san is not creepy, Shindou."

"Right," Shindou retorts. "Because checking out kids you knew when they were in diapers _isn't_ creepy."

"I don't know what your problem is, Shindou," Akira says, standing up, "but just because you lost to a strong player doesn't give you the right to make assumptions on their behalf or hurl baseless accusations."

Shindou laughs. "Baseless? Come on, Touya. I'm not the only one, or did you not know about the rumor going around that says you're sleeping with him?"

Akira stares at him in shock. "You actually _believed_ that?" Shindou doesn't say anything. "I'm leaving. When you've returned to your senses, let me know." And without another word, Akira leaves.

○•○•○

Hikaru's not sure why he takes the time off, buys a ticket to Seoul, and gets on the plane for the tournament anyway. Touya hasn't talked to him since that stupid fight, and their whole relationship – which had been going the way that Hikaru _wanted_ it to, damn it – has soured because of some stupid rumor. Ogata-san, who seems to have some unnerving 'Hikaru and Touya are fighting' radar, is watching them in amusement and _smirking_ , Yashiro is staring pensively out of the window, ignoring everyone, and Touya is pointedly ignoring his existence. He's not sure why Yashiro is here, although he has a sneaking suspicion it has to do with Su-yeong. They seemed to have hit it off the last time Su-yeong was in Japan, and he knows that they've been keeping in touch.

When they land, they are greeted by the Korean welcoming committee, which has none other than Ko Yeong-ha in its ranks. Su-yeong is there, too, and makes a beeline for Yashiro, who is standing next to Hikaru. Touya and Ogata-san walk by them without a word, and Hikaru swears that Ogata-san's hand brushes against Touya's hip.

Touya stops briefly to say something to Su-yeong; Hikaru assumes it's a greeting, but he doesn't speak Korean, and Su-yeong is obviously occupied being spoken to and can't be counted on to translate.

Another Korean voice says something, and Hikaru turns to see Ko Yeong-ha smirking at him. Yashiro replies, but his words are slow and unsure. Hikaru stares as Yashiro turns to Su-yeong, says something else, and is replied to in turn. Flabbergasted, he asks, "When did you start speaking Korean?"

"He began learning a year or so ago," Touya says icily, and Hikaru frowns. He thinks he remembers seeing some Korean books at Yashiro's place, but he never connected the dots.

He's about to say something to Touya – after all, it's the first time he's spoken to him in _weeks_ – when Ko Yeong-ha smiles and says something in Korean that makes Hikaru's back straighten. He has no clue what's being said, but he knows it's probably condescending. He looks to Su-yeong, who sighs heavily before translating. 

"He said he's sorry you aren't playing and that he wanted to play against you again," Su-yeong says.

Hikaru glares. "Yeah, well I could take you on right now. Why wait for an official match?" 

More Korean, and Su-yeong is starting to look uncomfortable. For some reason, he keeps darting glances at Yashiro, who looks bored. "He says there's a practice room in the hotel, and he has a goban in his room."

"You're on."

•○•○•

It's pointless to worry about Shindou, Akira decides, although he does admit to a bit of satisfaction when he loses his poorly thought-out match against Ko Yeong-ha. He should be focusing on his matches, especially since one of the Japanese delegates – Shirakawa-san – falls out in the first round.

There are banquets every night, and he spends most of his time watching Shindou and Ko Yeong-ha. For some reason, Ko has taken an interest in Shindou, and anyone with eyes can tell. Ogata-san has commented on it a few times. He doesn't insinuate anything – after all, Ogata-san is a professional, and gossip isn't really something he concerns himself with outside of sai – but if Ogata-san is saying something, then Ko is being obvious.

Of course, it doesn't seem like Shindou has taken notice.

He falls out in the fourth round against Ko and skips the banquet, opting to have dinner in his room. Shirakawa-san asks him if he's okay before heading down, and Akira tells him he's just tired. Shirakawa-san doesn't look like he believes him, but tells him to get some sleep. "I'll try to be quiet when I come back to the room," he says, and Akira nods.

○•○•○

The tournament ends with Kurata Atsushi triumphing over An Taeson and letting the whole world know it. Touya is still avoiding him, and Hikaru thinks that maybe he owes Touya an apology. After all, he _knew_ the rumors weren't true, and if he'd had any doubt, well. Ogata-san and Ko Yeong-ha is not something he wants to ponder for more than a second, but it's a little hard to ignore.

He tells Yashiro he's heading downstairs and leaves. He takes the stairs from the sixth floor to the fourth and wonders what's up with his friend. Yashiro has seemed more and more agitated as the tournament went on. At first, Hikaru thought it was because he wasn't playing, but he seemed fine during the games. 

By the time he gets to Shirakawa-san's and Touya's room, he's decided that he should probably just ask Yashiro about it. After all, he owes Yashiro a few vent sessions.

He knocks on the door and waits for someone to answer. He hears a muffled, "one moment," and then Touya is standing in front of him. "What do you want, Shindou?"

"Look," Hikaru says, casually leaning against the door frame in case Touya decides to shut it in his face before he can finish talking. "I just wanted to say that I was sorry, and that I was being a jackass. I mean, I told you to ignore the rumors, didn't I?"

Touya sighs and motions for Hikaru to come in."Thank you, Shindou," Touya says after a moment. 

"No problem." Hikaru looks around the room and sees clothes neatly folded on one of the beds. "You were packing, right? Let me help."

"No offense," Touya says with a small smile, "but I have seen your idea of packing. We haven't played in awhile, though. There is a magnetic goban in the side drawer."

They've only played a few moves when Hikaru screws up. "So, Ogata-san and Ko."

Touya stiffens. "What about them?"

"Nothing," Hikaru says quickly. "I was just surprised."

Touya turns around and looks at him. His face is guarded when he asks, "Are you jealous?"

"What?" Hikaru exclaims. "No way! Why would I be?"

"He's not paying attention to you anymore," Touya replies coolly, and Hikaru can tell he's angry about something. 

"Wait," he says, trying to follow Touya's train of thought. He's pretty good at it, and, if he's right, he _really_ doesn't like where this is going. "Do you think something's going on with me and _Ko_?"

"You've been spending a lot of time together."

He wants to say something, like _we're not spending time together_ or _the hell? It's Ko Yeong-ha._ Instead, he says, "What? Are you jealous?"

In retrospect, he probably deserved the shoe to the head.

•○•○•

"I still can't believe you thought there was something going on with me and Ko," Shindou complains around a mouth full of ramen – Akira's idea of a peace offering, although it's been nearly three months since the Nongshim Cup. "I mean, it's _Ko_."

"And this is somehow more offensive than thinking that I was sleeping with Ogata-san?" Akira asks, amused. "He is twenty years my senior. At least Ko is our age."

"But." Shindou stops to swallow his ramen before shoveling more into his mouth. "Just, yuck."

Akira finishes his ramen and just as Shindou slurps the soup from his own bowl. "Shall we go to the salon?"

Shindou holds the door for Akira. "Nah, I was thinking we could go to the park."

It's a nice evening – not too cold, not too warm. Shindou seems to have someplace particular in mind, and Akira follows. It's been a while since they've done something together, what with the fight and the Nongshim Cup, and Akira has missed this. 

Shindou leads him to a quiet neighborhood park and flops onto the grass, arms folded under his head. He's staring up at the sky, and Akira lies next to him and tries to see what Shindou sees. 

"You know," Shindou says a little while later, "I used to think that I was creating the universe when I played go." His back is off the grass, upper body supported by his forearms. He looks over at Akira and smiles. "It's stupid, right?"

Akira closes his eyes and pictures a goban, except it's the color of the night sky. He places an imaginary stone, and it's as bright as the stars above them. "I don't think so," he says quietly. "Go is its own world. We're drawn in and we create it with each stone, and it changes with every game. Your go draws me to you, and my go draws you to me, and every game is a new universe that we create."

His eyes are still closed when he feels something warm against his lips. He doesn't think and kisses Shindou back. He opens his eyes as Shindou pulls away, and he can see panic filling his eyes. He wants to say something – anything – but no words come.

Shindou quickly gets up, mutters something Akira can't make out, and takes off. Akira spends the next half hour staring at the sky, thinking of the universe, go, and Shindou Hikaru.


	4. Chapter 4

He ends up at Yashiro's, because he figures if he goes home, Touya will find him. Not that it's all that long of a shot that Touya won't find him _here_ , because, really, where else would he go? He ignores the thought and starts pounding on the door and then patiently waits. A shadow crosses the peephole, which Hikaru assumes is Yashiro's eye, so when the door doesn't immediately open, he calls out, loudly, "I saw your eye, Yashiro, now open up!"

Yashiro looks tired, and his hair is flat against his head. His laptop is open on what passes for his kitchen table – it's currently littered with scraps of paper and open books, although there seems to be a clean corner with a cup and an empty plate. "What do you want, Shindou?"

There is the tiniest feeling of guilt pricking at the back of his head because Yashiro is clearly _busy_ , and Hikaru _knows_ that something is going on with Yashiro that has to do with something not-school-related, and yet here he is, ready to spill his guts and have Yashiro give him advice – which he _really_ needs. Yashiro is eyeing him curiously and Hikaru shoves his way into the apartment and waits until Yashiro has the door closed. "What do you think of Touya?"

Yashiro blinks and then turns around. He disappears into the kitchen and returns with two beers. "What do you mean, what do I think of him?" Yashiro asks carefully, popping the cap on his Asahi . "He's a great player."

Hikaru takes a swig of his beer and blinks. It's cold and a bit bitter. He prefers Kirin, but this will do. "I mean, do you think he's good looking?"

"What the hell are you talking about Shindou?"

"I kissed him," Hikaru blurts out, and Yashiro simply stares at him. "Tonight. We had ramen, and then went to the park, and then I kissed him." Suddenly, the realization of what he's done – _oh god, I kissed Touya Akira_ – and he groans. "I'm surprised he didn't punch me right in the face."

"He _didn't_ punch you, right?" Yashiro asks. He looks bored. Hikaru nods. "So, what? You like him, he likes you. What's the big problem?"

"I don't know if he likes me! I mean, maybe he was just surprised; I mean, who the hell expects their eternal rival to kiss them?" Hikaru is still pacing, mind racing through as many scenarios as he can think of. "Oh god. What if he _does_ like me? How the hell am I supposed to deal with that? I mean." He stops and stares at Yashiro, who is shaking his head. "Help."

Yashiro sighs and goes back to the kitchen. When he returns, he has beer, edamame, and Pocky.

•○•○•

Akira's not terribly surprised when Shindou doesn't return his phone calls. Rather than slowly going insane, Akira takes the time to think.

Shindou kissed him, which probably means that he has some sort of romantic feelings for Akira. Feelings that Akira isn't entirely sure he returns. So he mulls it over in his head: dates with Shindou, holding Shindou's hand. None of the images are repulsive; in fact, the thought of holding Shindou's hand makes his stomach feel fluttery and warm. "But," he says to the empty room, "does that mean I _like_ Shindou?"

The room stays silent.

"Well," Ashiwara-san says the next day, "what do you think of Shindou-kun?" Akira is sitting in Ashiwara-san's kitchen, watching as he prepares dinner. "Did you not like it when he kissed you?"

Akira's cheeks heat up. "That's… Well," he stops and looks into his cup of tea. It's probably cold now; Ashiwara-san had made it an hour ago, when Akira had randomly appeared on his doorstep and started telling him everything that had ever happened with Shindou, _ever_ , culminating with the kiss in the park. "I didn't dislike it."

Ashiwara-san smiles reassuringly at him and hands him a cookie – freshly out of the oven five minutes ago – and says, "Have you talked to Shindou-kun?"

He takes a bite of the cookie and shakes his head. "Maybe it's better that way," he says after a moment. "If he does… like me, I'm not sure I can answer his feelings."

Ashiwara-san sits down next to him. "Do you _want_ to answer them?"

"Yes," Akira replies, definitively. "I just want to be able to sort my own feelings out first."

"Then tell him that. You're not rejecting him, and you're taking his feelings seriously. He'll be happy."

Akira isn't so sure.

○•○•○

The next time he sees Touya, it's in the bathroom of the Ki'in. They are on their lunch hour, and Hikaru has been feeling queasy since he sat down to play against Sakurano-san. And now Touya is in front of the sink, washing his hands, and Hikaru just wants to go back into the stall and hide until forever comes, and then maybe wait a few more years past that, just to be sure.

"I can see you, Shindou," Touya says, and he sounds amused, so Hikaru takes a tentative step toward the sink. Touya politely waits until Hikaru finishes washing up before saying the sentence he has been dreading: "We need to talk."

"Can it wait?" Hikaru asks, and he's annoyed with the note of desperation in his voice. 

"It won't take long," Touya says, and Hikaru's stomach sinks. He nods, and Touya leads him out of the restroom and out of the building. "There is a park down the street where we can talk," Touya says, and starts walking down the street. 

"So," Hikaru says as they meander down the street, "what's up?"

"About last week," Touya starts, but Hikaru cuts him off.

"Yeah, sorry about that." He tries to sound dismissive, but he sounds more desperate. "I don't know what I was thinking."

Touya stops and turns to look at him. "Do you like me, Shindou?"

The question makes him blink, because it's blunt and to the point, and he's not sure why it surprises him. Touya is anything but passive, and it's not like Hikaru thought he was _dumb_. Maybe dense, but not dumb. 

And it's not like he never thought he'd have this conversation with Touya, except that he sort of thought _he'd_ be the one in Touya's shoes – asking the questions and standing there, sure of himself. After all, that was the plan, wasn’t it? Get Touya comfortable with the idea by casually touching. But then that damned rumor started and now he's standing in the middle of the street, fighting the urge to turn and run as far away as he can. "I…"

Touya waits patiently as Hikaru gathers his thoughts.

"Yes," he says finally. Touya nods, as if he's figured this much out already. "What about you?"

"I don't know," he says slowly. "I didn't dislike it when you kissed me."

 _That's a good sign, right?_ Hikaru thinks. "You don't have to give me an answer right now, you know."

"Go on a date with me," Touya blurts out.

•○•○•

_Oh god,_ Akira thinks. _That did not come out the way I wanted it to._

"Seriously?" Shindou is looking at him with a comically hopeful expression. 

It occurs to Akira that Shindou probably thought he was going to be rejected. "Yes," he says. "I want to go out with you. On a date."

"I want to go on a date with you, too," Shindou says with a grin. "I mean, _obviously_."

Akira smiles. "Shall we go to a movie on Sunday?"

"How about we go to Odaiba?" Shindou suggests. Akira's not sure what there is to do in Odaiba, but he agrees, anyway.

○•○•○

Odaiba is crawling with couples and tourists. Hikaru is leaning against a pole, waiting for Touya, because Touya _insisted_ on meeting at Daiba Station rather than just taking the train _together_ , which is what Hikaru had suggested. So now he's leaning against a pole, watching people pair off and children pulling at their parents' shirts.

He looks at his watch and wonders if Touya is going to be late, because, if he is, Hikaru is _never_ going to let him live it down. Right after he stops thinking that maybe Touya doesn't _really_ want to go on a date, because, damn it, this was _Touya's_ idea. Granted, Touya still has five minutes before he's _officially_ late, so Hikaru just needs to relax.

Touya shows up at four o'clock on the dot. Hikaru has his phone in his hand, ready to call when Touya taps him on the shoulder and says, "Am I late?" Hikaru shakes his head and grins; Touya is wearing a short sleeve blue _t-shirt_ – something that Hikaru wasn't even aware Touya _owned_. Touya notices the staring and shrugs. "Ashiwara-san asked me to go shopping with him. He bought it for me as thanks."

What Touya really means is that Ashiwara-san took pity on him and bought him something that looked like it belonged in this _decade_. He makes a mental note to thank Ashiwara-san – maybe bring him candy or something; Saeki-san always seems to give Ashiwara-san candy of some kind, so Hikaru _knows_ Ashiwara-san has a sweet tooth. "Are you hungry? I hear there's this great ramen place at Aqua City."

"The ramen park?" Touya asks, and Hikaru nods. Touya looks amused. "You dragged me nearly an hour from home to have _ramen_?"

Hikaru rolls his eyes. "We can go somewhere else, sheesh. It's just… all the ramen, Touya."

Touya places a hand on Hikaru's shoulder. "It's fine, Shindou. Let's get ramen."

•○•○•

Akira has to consider the fact that he must be head over heels _in love_ with Shindou if he finds the idea of going on a _date_ to a _ramen theme park_ in _Odaiba_ charming. He watches as Shindou wolfs down his first bowl of ramen and gets up for a second – just how many different types of ramen in Japan _are_ there? – and casually picks at his bowl of Hakata ramen. 

Shindou smiles at him sheepishly halfway through his second bowl – which he doesn't finish, not that Akira can blame him; the bowls are _huge_ – and apologizes, which Akira waves off. He doesn't say that he enjoyed seeing Shindou enthusiastic about eating – apparently, being on a _date_ makes Shindou's usually… poor eating habits endearing, which is mortifying. 

They spend some time wandering through shops. They are walking past one of the shops in Aqua City when Akira spots two round pillows: one black and one white. Shindou sees them at the same time and leads Akira toward the store. He picks up the black one and announces, "We should totally buy these, Touya."

Akira buys the white one and Shindou buys the black. It's silly and a bit geeky, which suits him fine. He's busy trying to figure out where he can put the pillow when Shindou's hand brushes against his. Shindou is looking straight ahead, saying something about being thirsty, but his cheeks are a little red. Akira smiles and bumps his hand against Shindou's.

"Let's go to Tokyo Teleport next," Shindou suggests, and Akira agrees.

Shindou is predictably good at the majority of the arcade games, which Akira struggles not to lose five seconds in. It doesn't help that Shindou stands next to him and tries to help. When Akira loses for the third time in Pop'n'Music – a game that Shindou assures him is so easy, his grandpa could do it – Shindou starts laughing.

"Oh, god," Shindou says between cackles. "How can anyone be that bad?"

Akira picks up his pillow and throws it – bag and all – at Shindou's head.

○•○•○

Touya suggests the Ferris wheel next. "Apparently," he says, "you can see all of the lights in Tokyo from the top."

The wait is half an hour, give or take, but they finally make it to the gate. The worker looks bored and too warm in his uniform. There is sweat beading at his temples, and Hikaru wonders if he looks nearly as faded. Of course, he hasn't been standing out in the sun for who knows how long, but if thirty minutes felt like forever, he couldn't imagine what a whole shift would feel like. The guy leads them to a cabin, makes sure they're settled, and then locks the door.

Touya is looking out the window across from the door and Hikaru puts his bag on the seat next to him. The sun is setting, and Hikaru thinks it's probably picturesque, except he's never really paid attention to sunsets before now. He's sure that he's seen them before – after all, Akari used to drag him to the park all the time when they were younger to push her on the swing just as the sun was setting – but he doesn't think he's ever really _watched_ one. With each jerky move of the cabin, the sun is dips a little lower below the horizon, leaving pink and blue clouds in the sky. 

He doesn't say anything, and neither does Touya, so he looks out the window closest to him and watches the lights. He can see the colors on Rainbow Bridge, which he has to admit looks pretty nice. He's counting the water taxis when he hears Touya move, and suddenly Touya is sitting next to him, staring at him. Hikaru shifts a little, putting his back against the wall. "What's up?"

Touya doesn't say anything; instead, he sits down next to Hikaru and closes his eyes. Touya's left hand is lying in the space between them, and Hikaru casually sets his right hand down next to Touya's. There is a small smile on Touya's face now, and Hikaru has to force his attention back out the window, but then Touya's hand bumps his, and Hikaru is smiling, too. 

By the time they reach the top of the Ferris wheel, Hikaru has his left elbow against the glass window and is resting his chin in his palm, looking at the lights and the way they reflect over the water. Touya mirrors him on the other side of the cabin. Between them, their hands are clasped together. 

They spend the rest of the ride like this, nonchalantly looking at the scenery. Hikaru babbles about the couple in front of them and how the girl really needs to get a new stylist and runs his thumb up and down against the skin of Touya's hand.

•○•○•

Shindou insists on taking him home, which Akira thinks is a little silly, considering Shindou will only have to walk back to the station and go two more stops before reaching his apartment. But Shindou looks determined, and Akira is still feeling slightly high from the Ferris wheel ride, so he only puts up a token protest which Shindou happily bulldozes over. "It's not like it's late," Shindou explains as they get on the train, "I'll still get home before ten, so let me walk you home." Akira can't argue with that, and, more importantly, he doesn't want to. So he smiles and nods and lets Shindou think he's won this round.

The train isn't too crowded, and there are a few seats open, but they opt to stand instead. Shindou is grinning and going on and on about various inane things before shifting the conversation to people they know. "I mean," he's saying, "everyone knows that they're together, right? So why not just admit it? It's not like anyone cares." Akira shrugs, content to let Shindou rant about Ashiwara-san and Saeki-san until they get off at Akira's stop. 

The walk from the station to Akira's house is quiet. The air is warm and the sky is clear, and they pass very few people as they head down the street. Akira's stomach is beginning feel a little fluttery, and he's thinking that maybe, just maybe, Shindou is going to kiss him again. He sneaks a glance at Shindou, only to find Shindou looking at him. Shindou jerks his head forward, and when they pass under a street light, Akira can see a little bit of pink on Shindou's cheeks.

It isn't until they reach the door and Shindou is turning around that Akira realizes that Shindou is just going to _leave_. Somehow, the thought is unacceptable. "Aren't you going to kiss me?" Akira's voice is soft, but he can tell by Shindou's expression that he heard every word clearly.

Shindou stops and turns to look at him. Akira looks him straight in the eyes, and Shindou laughs nervously. "What? You mean, here?" The look he sends Shindou's way has Shindou bouncing on the balls of his feet with a sheepish smile because, of course, _where else_? It's just him and Shindou, and no one else is around. It's quiet and dark, except for the porch light; he can't think of a more perfect time for Shindou to kiss him. Shindou is staring at him and there's something in his expression that makes Akira's mouth go dry. "I mean, do you want me to?"

Akira nods.

Shindou licks his lips and steps a little closer. Akira is leaning forward slightly, waiting, and all Shindou has to do is take one more step. Akira closes his eyes and waits.

Shindou's lips are cool and a little dry, and they press very softly against Akira's mouth. He leans forward just as Shindou slowly pulls away. Their faces are a breath apart, and Akira closes the difference. He places his right hand on Shindou's hip and he can feel one of Shindou's hands on his shoulder.

Akira can taste the waxy remnants of Shindou's lip balm as he tentatively traces Shindou's lips with his tongue. Shindou makes some sort of noise and suddenly opens his mouth. Shindou tastes like caramel milk, and Akira presses closer.

Their chests are pressed together, and Akira can feel his heartbeat speed up. He's feeling a bit light-headed and disconnected from his body; if it was possible, he thinks he could float away, but Shindou is warm and solid in front of him, anchoring him. Shindou's hand has moved from Akira's shoulder to his hair, and he leans into the touch.

The kiss is soft and slow, and when they finally break apart, there is a smile on Akira's face. He feels a little shy, and there is something close to wonder on Shindou's face. Akira presses a quick kiss on the corner of Shindou's mouth, and Shindou's fingers card briefly through Akira's hair. For a moment, the world is just them and the porch light and the stars, then Shindou slowly lets his hand fall to his side, and Akira unhooks his thumb from Shindou's belt loop.

They say good night, and Akira leans against the door as he watches Shindou disappear.

○•○•○

Dating Touya isn't that different from not dating Touya. They still meet at the salon for games and fight over ridiculous moves (Hikaru still thinks that Touya wouldn't know a brilliant move if it bit him). They go to movies with Yashiro, who still seems troubled. Touya still comes over to Hikaru's apartment for dinner, and they both let Ashiwara-san cook for them at Touya's house. 

Hikaru thinks that Yashiro knows what's going on, but Yashiro doesn't say anything. Whether this is because he's waiting for Hikaru to tell _him_ , or because he figures it's not his place to say anything, Hikaru doesn't know. Yashiro seems more and more wrapped up in school and tournaments, which is actually a lot like Hikaru's life, except for school. 

When Yashiro loses to Ochi – which, really, Hikaru thinks, is just _insulting_ given how much he and Touya play Yashiro – Touya starts shooting him worried looks. 

"Has Yashiro said anything to you?" Touya asks. They are at Touya's house, going over Touya's win against Morishita-sensei. Hikaru knows that Morishita-sensei is going to want to go over this exact same game tomorrow, and he already knows it's going to be one of those study sessions where Morishita-sensei is going to yell. A lot.

"No," Hikaru replies. "What if he went here?" He places a stone at 17-5 and looks at the formation critically. If Morishita-sensei could have taken the upper right, Hikaru thinks he could have won.

Touya shakes his head. "I would have just gone here," he places a stone at 15-7, "and he would have lost the corner much sooner." He removes the two stones and continues recreating the game. "Perhaps we should talk to him?"

"We're supposed to go to the arcade tomorrow morning," Hikaru informs him. "I'll try talking to him."

"All right," Touya says, staring at the goban. "What do you think about going here?"

"Stupid," Hikaru replies dismissively. "Morishita-sensei would _never_ go there. Plus, it's a dumb move."

Touya is staring at him, eyes narrowed. "It is not a stupid move, Shindou." Touya looks like he's going to say something else, but Hikaru leans over the goban and kisses him.

•○•○•

They have been dating for seven months, and Shindou hasn't tried anything except for the occasional grope. This isn't to say that _Akira_ hasn't tried anything, but every time he has, he's inadvertently _injured_ Shindou. He winces, remembering the unintentional bruise on Shindou's ear – Ashiwara-san has been really helpful in providing him with ideas, but Akira just doesn't think he has the skill to pull them off without inflicting bodily harm.

Which is why he is sitting in Ashiwara-san's living room, nursing a cup of tea, and feeling extremely uncomfortable as Ashiwara-san patiently describes how two men have sex. It's not like Akira hasn't thought about – in fact, he's wondering how he's even managed to maintain his winning streak the past month with as much time as he spends imagining Shindou naked – but he's completely clueless. And he doesn't have many people he can ask about it.

He briefly – _briefly_ – considered asking Ogata-san, but quickly dismissed the idea for several reasons, chief among them being the overwhelming mortification he would suffer simply _uttering_ the word _sex_ in Ogata-san's presence. Ashiwara-san _already_ thought he and Shindou were doing it, so it is only marginally less embarrassing asking him. 

Saeki-san is sitting on the armchair, looking as uncomfortable as Akira feels. The tips of his ears are red and he keeps looking between them, panic mounting on his face. Ashiwara-san starts talking about the importance of lubricant, and suddenly, Saeki-san is standing up. "I'm going to go start dinner," he announces, and Ashiwara-san shoots him an amused look. "Will you be staying, Touya-kun?"

"No," Akira says, grateful for the momentary respite. He's grateful to Ashiwara-san, but he didn't expect him to be… this _detailed._ He looks at the wall clock and puts his tea on the coaster. "Actually, I should be leaving if I don't want to be late."

Ashiwara-san nods and stands. "Let me give you something," he says and motions for Akira to wait. He returns a moment later with a little box and a small white tube. Ashiwara-san smiles and hands them to Akira, who stares at them in confusion. "Condoms and lubricant," Ashiwara-san says, and Akira is sure that his face is bright red. "Just in case."

Akira thanks him awkwardly.

○•○•○

Hikaru blames Waya and Yashiro, because those assholes _knew_ he was meeting Touya for dinner, and they _still_ insisted on one more game, and now he's going to be late. Of course, he could have said no, but there was ramen on the line, so maybe it's not _entirely_ their faults – and, of course, if he tells Touya about this, somehow it will _all_ be Hikaru's fault.

So, when he gets to the Touya residence, he simply offers up a prayer to whatever god will listen to not have Touya ask questions. It's not like Hikaru being late is _new_ anyway. He rings the doorbell and stands there, fidgeting, while he waits for Touya to answer the door. He's about to ring it again when the door opens, and Touya smiles shyly at him.

Hikaru smiles back stupidly and waits to Touya to invite him in. Touya moves aside, and Hikaru steps inside, kicking off his shoes and lining them up neatly next to Touya's. Once they're nice and straight, he moves over to Touya and kisses him.

He means for it to be a quick hello, but then somehow he's got Touya up against the wall, leg between Touya's thighs, and Touya smells like fall – cool and fresh. He has to remind himself not to push, and starts to pull away, but Touya has somehow found his way into Hikaru's shirt, and his hand is resting on the skin of Hikaru's stomach.

A knock on the door sends them flying apart. Touya is hidden behind the door, meaning the only one that the other person can see is Hikaru, so he turns and smiles. The delivery boy holds up a bag, and Hikaru shoots a glance at Touya, who is still out of sight, and tells the delivery boy, "Hold on."

Touya disappears around the corner and returns a moment later with his wallet. Hikaru heads further into the house and tries to sort out his thoughts. If the delivery boy hadn't shown up, he doesn't know if he'd have been able to pull away. The image of Touya licking his lips after Hikaru had jumped back is seared into the front of his brain, and he knows he has to be more careful. This is his first relationship – Touya's, too – and he doesn't want to make Touya feel like he's being forced into anything he doesn't want, but damn if his patience isn't nearing its limit.

He's taking deep breaths and forcing himself to think of Kuwabara-sensei in a tutu when Touya comes in holding sushi. Hikaru gets up from his seat and heads to the kitchen to grab plates and chopsticks. He grabs a nice bamboo pair for Touya and rummages through the drawer until he finds the bright orange plastic chopsticks he left a few weeks ago. By the time he gets back to the dining room, the large platter of sushi is sitting in the middle of the table.

They eat and talk about random things; Touya comments on different title qualifiers and Hikaru talks about his suspicions about Su-yeong and Yashiro. "I think that's why Yashiro is in a funk," Hikaru announces. "I mean," he continues, ticking things off on his fingers, "he's constantly in Korea, and he sees Su-yeong at international tournaments. They spent a lot of time together at the Nongshim Cup, and there was that fight during their exhibition game last week. Plus, they disappeared around the same time, and Yashiro totally had marks on his neck the next morning."

Touya looks at him and shakes his head. "Not this again. Shindou, I've told you before, there is nothing going on with Yashiro and Hong."

Hikaru gives him a skeptical look. "Do you know something I don't know?"

"If you're asking if Yashiro has told me anything, no. I just happen to pay attention."

"I pay attention, too," Hikaru grouses. "And it totally looks like they're dating."

Touya takes Hikaru's hand and gives it a small squeeze. "Yashiro will talk to us when he's ready to talk," Touya says. "Shall we play a game?"

Hikaru looks at his watch and decides he has time to play a game or two before the trains stop running. "Sure."

•○•○•

Akira is pretty sure he wants to ask Shindou to stay the night. He keeps thinking about the feel of Shindou's skin and Shindou pressing into him, and wonders what it would be like to have Shindou next to him. He's just not sure how to ask, or if he's even supposed to ask. _What if I'm just supposed to seduce him?_ he thinks, and the thought fills him with a little bit a fear and a whole lot of confusion, because, while he doesn't have a problem with Ashiwara-san giving him tips and educating him on the mechanics of safe sex, there is _no way_ he's going to ask him how to seduce someone.

They are just about to reach his father's study room when Akira has a brilliant idea. "Why don't we use the goban in my room?" he suggests. 

"Your room?" Shindou's voice sounds a little strangled and his cheeks are suspiciously red. Whenever Shindou is over, they play in the study room; there is plenty of room in there, and his father stores the tsumego books and the kifu. Akira hardly ever uses the goban in his room when his parents are away, and he knows that Shindou knows this, too. Akira feels his own cheeks heat up in response, but nods. "If you're sure…"

Akira meets his eyes. "I'm sure." He takes Shindou's hand and leads him down the hall.

○•○•○

The alarm clock is making an atrociously annoying beeping noise, which is what wakes Hikaru up. He tries to roll over to whack the annoying thing – which, his sleep-addled mind points out, he doesn't remember setting the night before – and instead rolls onto something warm. 

"Ow," says the warm thing, and suddenly, Hikaru is sitting up, trying to pull as much of the sheets around him as possible, because he knows _exactly_ what the warm thing is, and _oh god,_ he thinks in distress, _why didn't I at least put on my boxers?_

Touya Akira is blinking up at him, the perfect picture of debauchery complete with tousled hair and sleepy smile. Which is just unfair, because clearly Touya remembers everything upon waking up, while a stupid alarm clock threw Hikaru for a loop. "I hate your alarm clock," Hikaru informs Touya, who reaches out a hand and stops the blaring.

"We have games this morning," Touya says with a yawn. "We need to get ready. You can take your shower first."

Hikaru leaves Touya, who is picking up clothes and shaking his head, and heads to the bathroom. He takes a quick shower and finds a spare toothbrush under the sink. Touya once said that his mom keeps a stash of spare toiletries in one of the linen closets after a few of Touya-sensei's study groups ran late. Hikaru assumes she restocks every time they're in the country, and he's glad she does. He brushes his teeth and heads back to Touya's room.

Touya is wearing a yukata and holding Hikaru's shirt between two fingers. There is a grimace on his face. "What's wrong with my shirt?" Hikaru asks.

"You can't wear this today, Shindou," Touya says, and Hikaru can tell by his voice that he's serious.

"Why not?"

Without a word, Touya turns the shirt around so Hikaru can see the front. He doesn't notice the stain at first, but when he sees it, he understands. "Oh god," he says. "That's what I used to… Last night, when we…" Touya just nods. "Oh god."

"You can wear something of mine," Touya says, and Hikaru is sure it's meant to be comforting, but all Hikaru can think of are the dozens of ugly sweaters and vests which are probably arranged by color in Touya's closet. "And before you argue, you can't go to a title qualifier half naked."

"I think I'd rather go half naked," he mutters as Touya heads to the bathroom.

•○•○•

Akira spends a good five minutes arguing with Shindou about shirts. Every sweater he pulls out of his closet is immediately vetoed, and time is slowly ticking down. "Shindou," Akira says, holding up a perfectly acceptable cardigan, "we need to leave in _five_ minutes or we will be _late_."

"Don't you have anything, you know, _normal_?" Shindou is frowning at the sweater in Akira's hand. "What about that shirt you bought the first time we went to the movies?"

"It's dirty," Akira replies flatly, shoving the sweater into Shindou's hands. "We need to _leave_ , Shindou. Put on the shirt."

○•○•○

He does his best to ignore the stares. And the smirks. And the loud whispers, because some _assholes_ don't know how to keep their voices below a shout. He glares at Waya, who shakes his head and continues his whisper-shout to Isumi-san. Yashiro is already in the game room and in front of his goban when Hikaru comes in.

"So," Yashiro says, and Hikaru has to give him points for at least containing his laughter. "Stay over at Touya's last night?"

"Shut up," Hikaru growls. Touya is standing next to him now, smiling, and Hikaru feels like this is probably some sort of revenge for a year ago, except now when the rumors start up again – and he _knows_ they will, damn Waya to hell – they'll be mostly true.

"Ignore it," Touya suggests quietly, and there's a smirk on his face. If Hikaru didn't know any better, he would say that Touya planned this. "Besides, the shirt you're wearing is much nicer than the one you lent to me."

Hikaru looks down at the lavender, green, and yellow monstrosity that Touya had handed him this morning. Somehow, he swears the argyle looks demented and possessed, and Hikaru's sure the lavender makes him look paler than a ghost. 

"It looks good on you, Shindou," Yashiro says, although there is a suspicious snort at the end of the sentence. "Lavender is your color."

"I am going to rip you apart, just watch," Hikaru threatens, but the look Yashiro gives him makes him think it's not very effective.

"You'd think after getting laid you'd be more easy-going," Yashiro sighs, throwing his hands up in a _what can you do?_ fashion. "Oh well."

Hikaru is about to say something when the proctor comes into the room and announces that matches are going to begin. Yashiro smirks as Hikaru heads towards his goban. 

Let them talk, he decides. He's got a game to win.


End file.
